PayPal Braintree

What is Braintree

Braintree is a full-stack payment platform that makes it easy for businesses to accept online and mobile payments. It functions as both a payment gateway and a merchant account provider, offering a streamlined solution for e-commerce and subscription-based companies. Founded in 2007 in Chicago, Braintree was acquired by PayPal in 2013 and now operates as a service under the PayPal umbrella, often referred to as PayPal Enterprise Payments. The core purpose of Braintree is to provide developers and businesses with a simple, secure, and flexible way to integrate various payment methods, including credit and debit cards, PayPal, Venmo, and digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay, into their websites and applications through a single integration.

Braintree Features

Braintree offers a comprehensive set of features designed to manage the entire payment lifecycle.

• Payment Gateway and Merchant Account: Braintree provides an all-in-one solution, combining a payment gateway to process transactions and a merchant account to hold funds, simplifying the setup process for businesses.
• Multiple Payment Methods: Accept a wide range of payment types, including major credit and debit cards, PayPal, Venmo (in the US), Apple Pay, Google Pay, and various local payment methods to cater to a global customer base.
• Recurring Billing: Set up and manage subscription plans and recurring payments automatically. This is ideal for SaaS companies, membership sites, and other subscription-based business models.
• Advanced Fraud Protection: Utilize customizable fraud detection tools, including basic AVS and CVV checks, as well as more advanced features to help identify and prevent fraudulent transactions, protecting your revenue.
• Global Reach: Process payments in over 130 currencies and receive settlements in multiple currencies, making it easier to conduct business internationally.
• Data Portability: Braintree allows you to take your customer payment data with you if you decide to switch providers, giving you control over your information.
• Developer-Friendly Tools: Offers robust SDKs (Software Development Kits) for various programming languages and mobile platforms, along with a sandbox environment for testing integrations before going live.
• Reporting and Analytics: Access a detailed control panel with reporting tools to monitor transactions, track sales trends, and manage your business performance.

Braintree Pricing Plans

Braintree's pricing is designed to be straightforward and scalable. There are generally two main pricing structures:

• Standard Pricing: This plan is suitable for most businesses and typically involves a per-transaction fee. There are no monthly fees or setup costs. You pay a flat percentage plus a fixed fee for each successful card or digital wallet transaction. The rates can vary based on the payment method used.
• Custom Pricing: For large-volume businesses or companies with unique business models, Braintree offers custom pricing plans. This involves working with their sales team to create a tailored pricing package that aligns with your transaction volume and specific needs.

Braintree Free Plan

Braintree does not have a free plan for processing live transactions. The pricing model is pay-as-you-go, meaning you only incur fees when you successfully process a payment. However, Braintree provides a completely free and fully-featured sandbox environment. This allows developers and businesses to sign up, integrate the platform, and test all functionalities, including running test transactions and setting up subscriptions, without any cost or commitment. This serves as an indefinite free trial for development and testing purposes.

How to use Braintree

Getting started with Braintree involves a few key steps to integrate its payment processing capabilities into your platform.

1. Sign Up for a Sandbox Account: First, create a free sandbox account on the Braintree website. This gives you access to the control panel and test API credentials.
2. Choose Your Integration Path: Decide how you will connect to Braintree. You can use their Drop-in UI for a quick, pre-built checkout form, or use their client SDKs (for web or mobile) and a server-side SDK for a more custom integration.
3. Integrate on the Server-Side: Using a server-side language like Python, Ruby, PHP, or Node.js, install the Braintree SDK. Your server will handle generating a client token, receiving payment method nonces from the client, and creating transaction requests.
4. Integrate on the Client-Side: On your website or mobile app, use the client token from your server to initialize the Braintree client SDK. This SDK securely collects payment information from the user and converts it into a single-use payment method nonce.
5. Test Thoroughly: Use the sandbox environment and Braintree's test card numbers to simulate various transaction scenarios, including successful payments, declines, and voids, to ensure your integration works correctly.
6. Apply for a Production Account: Once testing is complete, apply for a live Braintree merchant account. After approval, you will receive production API credentials.
7. Go Live: Replace your sandbox API keys with your production keys to start accepting real payments from customers.

Pros and Cons of Braintree

Pros:

• All-in-One Solution: Combines a merchant account and payment gateway, simplifying setup.
• Wide Range of Payment Options: Supports cards, PayPal, Venmo, and digital wallets, improving conversion rates.
• Transparent Pricing: The standard pay-as-you-go model has no monthly fees, making it accessible for new businesses.
• Strong Developer Tools: Excellent documentation, SDKs, and a robust sandbox make integration straightforward for developers.
• Backed by PayPal: Carries the reputation and security infrastructure of a major financial technology company.

Cons:

• Account Approval Process: The application process for a production account can be lengthy and has strict requirements.
• Customer Support: While support is available, response times can be slow for businesses on the standard plan compared to enterprise clients.
• Complexity for Non-Developers: While developer-friendly, it can be challenging for users without technical expertise to set up a custom integration.

Braintree Integrations

Braintree integrates with a wide variety of e-commerce platforms, shopping carts, and business software, making it easy to add to your existing technology stack.

• E-commerce Platforms: Connects seamlessly with platforms like Shopify, BigCommerce, Magento, and WooCommerce.
• Subscription Management: Works with subscription and billing tools such as Chargebee and Recurly.
• CRM and Accounting: Integrates with business systems like Salesforce and accounting software like Xero and QuickBooks through third-party connectors.
• Booking and Ticketing: Can be integrated into booking platforms like Eventbrite.

These integrations are typically configured within the third-party platform's settings by entering your Braintree API credentials.

Braintree Alternatives

• Stripe: A direct competitor known for its developer-first approach, extensive API documentation, and broad feature set. Stripe is often preferred by startups and tech companies for its flexibility and ease of custom integration.
• Adyen: A global payment platform focused on enterprise-level businesses. Adyen offers a single platform for online, in-app, and in-person payments with extensive global payment method support and risk management tools.
• Square: While well-known for its in-person payment hardware, Square also offers a strong online payment processing solution. It is particularly good for small businesses and those that need to manage both online and physical sales in one system.
• Checkout.com: A cloud-based payment platform that provides a unified solution for global payment processing. It is known for its granular data reporting and is a strong choice for large international merchants.

Braintree API

Yes, Braintree provides a comprehensive and well-documented API for developers. The API allows for deep customization of the payment experience. You can obtain your API keys for free by signing up for a sandbox account. In your sandbox control panel, navigate to Settings > API Keys to find your Merchant ID, Public Key, and Private Key.

Here is a basic example of how to create a transaction using the Braintree Node.js SDK:

const braintree = require("braintree");

const gateway = new braintree.BraintreeGateway({
  environment: braintree.Environment.Sandbox, // Use Sandbox for testing
  merchantId: "YOUR_MERCHANT_ID",
  publicKey: "YOUR_PUBLIC_KEY",
  privateKey: "YOUR_PRIVATE_KEY"
});

gateway.transaction.sale({
  amount: "10.00",
  paymentMethodNonce: "nonce-from-the-client",
  options: {
    submitForSettlement: true
  }
}, (err, result) => {
  if (result.success) {
    console.log("Transaction ID: " + result.transaction.id);
  } else {
    console.error(result.message);
  }
});

For more details, you can visit the Braintree Developer Docs website.

Braintree Affiliate Program

Braintree does not have a traditional, public-facing affiliate program for individuals to earn commissions on referrals. Instead, its partnership efforts are focused on the PayPal Partner Program. This program is designed for developers, agencies, and platform providers who integrate PayPal and Braintree payment solutions for their clients. Partners may receive benefits such as technical support, marketing resources, and potential revenue-sharing opportunities. If you are an individual influencer or wish to inquire about a referral partnership, it is best to contact the PayPal or Braintree sales or support teams directly to discuss potential collaboration opportunities.